Ulysses Haggard
Ulysses Haggard (b. 22 June 2247) is a human Captain in the United Federation of Planets' Starfleet, and a native of Terra (Earth). Haggard is currently (2285) assigned to the [[U.S.S. Argo|USS Argo (NCC-2001)]] as commanding officer. Childhood and Early Life Ulysses Haggard was born in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States of America legacy-state, United Earth. The second of two children, Haggard has a sister, Octavia Ionescqu, who is three years older. Their parents, James Haggard and Isabella Ionescqu, are highly regarded members of the Federation Diplomatic Corps. The family moved frequently as FDC postings took them from world to world, but they always maintained what they called their “homestead,” a sprawling, comfortable house and a few acres of land on Mt. McGregor, near Wilton, NY. As diplomats, the family often traveled aboard Starfleet vessels, giving young Ulysses an early exposure to both starships and the people who crewed them, and while Antonia followed their parents into the diplomatic service, he began studying for Starfleet Academy entrance exams at the age of 10. Starfleet Academy and Early Career Accepted into the Academy at age 17, Haggard excelled in most of his studies, particularly cultural xenoanthropology, logistical planning, strategic theory, and tactics. Although his interests in advanced sciences never rose above the basic level required for Starfleet officers, his leadership and interpersonal skills quickly identified him as prime command division material. Commissioned as an ensign upon his graduation in 2268, Haggard was chosen for one of the most sought-after postings in the fleet: a billet aboard a Constitution-class starship, the [https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/USS_Potemkin_(NCC-1657) USS Potemkin (NCC-1657)]. Shortly after Ensign Haggard joined the crew, the Potemkin rendezvoused with the [https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/USS_Lexington_(NCC-1709) USS Lexington (NCC-1709)], Excalibur(NCC-1664), Hood (NCC-1703), and Enterprise (NCC-1701) for exercises designed to test the M-5 multitronic tactical computer. Later known as the M-5 Incident, the operation was disastrous, resulting in the loss of hundreds of lives, including the entire crew of the Excalibur. For his composure and courage during the action, Haggard was given a field promotion to lieutenant, junior grade, and came to the attention of Captain S’rrel, the Potemkin’s commanding officer, and one of the first Caitians in Starfleet. An outstanding commander in his own right, S’rrel took an interest in Haggard, becoming an important mentor to the young officer. Promotion and Command At the conclusion of the Potemkin’''s five-year mission under Captain S’rrel, the ship entered dry-dock over the Utopia Planitia shipyards on Mars for major refits. Promoted to full lieutenant in 2271, Haggard was assigned to the USS-''Bridger (NCC-591), a Hermes-class scout ordered to survey the Arachnid Nebula under the command of Commander Henry Grant. Promoted to lt. commander in 2273, Haggard was appointed executive officer of the Bridger ''at Commander Grant’s request, and held the post until his promotion to full commander in 2276. That same year, Commander Haggard was given his first command: the USS ''Cincinnatus (NCC-501), a newly refitted Saladin-class starship. Under Haggard the Cincinnatus embarked on a four-year exploratory and patrol mission ranging along the “southeastern” borders of the Klingon Empire. In 2279, the Cincinnatus was temporarily reassigned to Starfleet Intelligence in order to assist in a classified mission. During this assignment, Haggard met Commander Wolfgang von Wartburg, a brilliant scientist and intelligence officer and despite – or perhaps because of – their different interests and professional specializations, he and Haggard discovered that they made an excellent team. The two became friends, and after the mission they kept in touch, each following the other’s career closely. Captaincy With the end of the Cincinnatus’ mission in 2280, Haggard was promoted to Captain, and given command of one of the new Miranda-class starships, the [https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/USS_Saratoga_(NCC-1887) USS Saratoga (NCC-1887)]. Tasked with a five-year mission of discovery into unexplored space, Haggard and his crew set to work doing what Starfleet has always done best, and performed brilliantly, exploring 22 new star systems, 18 proto-stars, nebulae, and other astronomical phenomena, discovering the existence of eight new pre-warp civilizations, and making first contact with three other, warp-capable cultures. Unfortunately, the mission was not entirely peaceful. In 2283, the Saratoga answered a distress call from Bre’el IV, which was being raided by three Klingon B’rel-class birds-of-prey. When challenged, the Klingon ships moved to attack the Saratoga. Using the ship’s warp field to reinforce the Saratoga’s structural integrity field, Haggard fought his ship through a series of radical maneuvers, getting in close and using tractor beams on the enemy vessels to rapidly alter the Saratoga’s course and orientation at extremely high, sublight speeds. Not only did this put the Saratoga in an ideal range for her phasers to have devastating effect, but in several instances, it caused the Klingons to fire on their own ships when the Saratoga quite suddenly was no longer where she had been when the disruptors had locked on. With one bird-of-prey destroyed, one severely damaged, and the third leaking plasma, the Klingons retreated, and the Saratoga rendered aid to the Bre’ella. Although this tactic was inevitably named the “Haggard Maneuver,” Haggard himself points to an article in Starfleet Aerospace News ''written by then Midshipman first class Kenra Sanna-del,'' which theorized that the warp field could be used in exactly that fashion. “All we did was put Sanna-del’s theory to the test,” Haggard says. Current Assignment As the Saratoga’s mission was wrapping up in late 2284, Captain Haggard was informed by his old mentor and friend, Rear Admiral S’rrel, that he would be appointed to command the USS Argo (NCC-2001), the second Excelsior-class vessel scheduled to enter service. With the failure of the transwarp drive, and sabotage of the [https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/USS_Excelsior USS Excelsior (NX-2000)] herself, the launch of the Argo was pushed back for major systems replacement and refitting. In the meantime, Haggard has been assigned to Utopia Planitia to oversee final fitting out and logistical arrangements, including supplies and crew assignments. This has kept him travelling regularly from Mars to Spacedock (Earth) to Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco, but he has also been able to enjoy some leave at his family home in New York. Category:USS Argo Category:Player Characters